Wednesday, November 30, 2016

Emu

The emu (Dromaius novaehollandiae) is a large, flightless bird, in the
ratite group, second in size only to the ostrich (found in Africa).Native to Australia, the emu’s closest
relative is the much more rare, and colorful cassowary.New Zealand’s kiwi is another, slightly
more distant, relative.

A few emus are
farmed in New Zealand, but we also have an opportunity to see them in captivity
at our local wildlife park.The
ones that I have photographed are at Orana Park, in Christchurch.The emu is not endangered, so there is
no rearing program for them here, nor are they likely to be the subject of a
research project.They are kept at
the park so that people can observe them behaving naturally in an outdoor,
semi-wild environment.

The birds often
pace up and down along the fence line emitting a booming sound.It is mostly the females that produce
this noise, while males make a grunting sound.An inflatable throat pouch creates the booming, which if
emitted at high intensity, may be heard up to 2 kilometres away.

On hot days the
staff turn on a hose to create a temporary pool in their enclosure, which the
emus use for bathing.They sit in
the pool, immersing their feathers, then stand up and shake off the water.Although they can’t fly, emus can run
very fast.They have powerful beaks,
so visitors need to be wary of getting too close to the wire.In the wild, they should not be
approached, as powerful legs and feet can inflict a damaging kick.

Emus’ soft
feathers are very attractive, so it can be tempting to stroke them.However, this is probably not an
impulse to give in to!

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About Me

I have a large garden in the suburbs of Christchurch, New Zealand, which is the main focus of my photography when I am not travelling. I love camping and hiking here and overseas, especially in the deserts and mountains of western North America.